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Wodaabe

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Wodaabe
Woɗaaɓeوٛطَاٻ‎ٜ𞤏𞤮𞤯𞤢𞥄𞤩𞤫
Young Wodaabe women, Niger
Total population
100,000 (2001)[1]
Regions with significant populations
Niger,Chad
Languages
Fula
Religion
Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
OtherFula

TheWodaabe(Fula:Woɗaaɓe,وٛطَاٻ‎ٜ,𞤏𞤮𞤯𞤢𞥄𞤩𞤫) is a name that is used to designate a subgroup of theFulaethnic groupwho are traditionallynomadicfound primarily inNigerandChad.All Wodaabe people should not be mistaken as Mbororo as these are two separate subgroups of the Fulani people. It is translated into English as "Cattle Fulani", and meaning "those who dwell in cattle camps".[2][3]The Wodaabe culture is one of the 186 cultures of thestandard cross-cultural sampleused by anthropologists to compare cultural traits.[4]A Wodaabe woman,Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim,was also chosen to represent civil society of the world on the signing ofParis Protocolon 22 April 2016.[5]

History

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The Wodaabe are cattle-herders and traders in theSahel,with migrations stretching from southernNiger,through northernNigeria,northeasternCameroon,southwesternChad,western region of theCentral African Republicand the northeastern of theDemocratic Republic of Congo.[6]The number of Wodaabe was estimated in 2001 to be 100,000.[1]They are known for their elaborate attire and rich cultural ceremonies.[7][8]

The Wodaabe speak theFula languageand don't use a written language.[9]In the Fula language,woɗameans "taboo",andWoɗaaɓemeans "people of the taboo."[3]This is sometimes translated as "those who respect taboos", a reference to the Wodaabe isolation from broaderFula/Fulaniculture, and their contention that they retain "older" traditions than their Fula neighbors.[10]

By the 17th century, the Fula people across West Africa were among the first ethnic groups to embrace Islam, were often leaders of those forces which spread Islam, and have been traditionally proud of the urban, literate, and pious life with which this has been related.[11]Both Wodaabe and other Fula see in the Wodaabe the echoes of an earlier pastoralist way of life, of which the Wodaabe are proud and of which urban Fula people are sometimes critical.[12][13]

Everyday life

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Wodaabe inAdamawa(1900)

The Wodaabe keep herds of long-hornedZebucattle. The dry season extends from October to May. Their annual travel during the wet season follows the rain from the south to the north.[14]Groups of several dozen relatives, typically several brothers with their wives, children and elders, travel on foot, donkey or camel, and stay at each grazing spot for a couple of days. A large wooden bed is the most important possession of each family; when camping it is surrounded by some screens. The women also carrycalabashesas a status symbol.[9]These calabashes are passed down through the generations, and often provoke rivalry between women. The Wodaabe diet consists of milk and groundmillet,yogurt,sweet tea and sometimes goat or sheep meat.[15]

Religion, morals and customs

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Wodaabe religion is largelyIslamic(mixed with pre-Islamic beliefs).[16]Although there are varying degrees of orthodoxy exhibited, most adhere to at least some of the basic requirements of the religion.[17]Islam became a religion of importance among Wodaabe peoples during the 16th century when the scholaral-Maghilipreached the teachings ofMuhammadto the elite of northern Nigeria. Al-Maghili was responsible for converting the ruling classes amongHausa,Fula,andTuaregpeoples in the region.[6]

The code of behavior of the Wodaabe emphasizes reserve and modesty (semteende), patience and fortitude (munyal), care and forethought (hakkilo), and loyalty (amana). They also place great emphasis on beauty and charm.[18]

Parents are not allowed to talk directly to their two first born children, who will often be cared for by their grandparents. During daylight, husband and wife cannot hold hands or speak in a personal manner with each other.[9]

A young maiden judging the contestants in aGerewolfestival
Young suitors perform theYaakedance in aGerewolfestival, Niger 1997

Beauty ideal and Gerewol festival

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Main article:Gerewol

At the end of the rainy season in September, Wodaabe clans gather in several traditional locations before the beginning of their dry seasontranshumancemigration.[8]The best known of these isIn-Gall'sCure Saléesalt market andTuaregseasonal festival. Here the young Wodaabe men, with elaborate make-up, feathers and other adornments, perform theYaake:dances and songs to impress marriageable women.[8]The male beauty ideal of the Wodaabe stresses tallness, white eyes and teeth; the men will often roll their eyes and show their teeth to emphasize these characteristics.[8]Wodaabe clans then join for the remainder of the week-longGerewol:a series of barters over marriage and contests where the young men's beauty and skills are judged by young women.[19]

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The documentaryWodaabe - Herdsmen of the SunbyWerner Herzogdescribes the Wodaabe.

In the 1999 documentaryZwischen 2 Welten(between two worlds) director Bettina Haasen films her personal conversations with Wodaabe members.

Sahara - Absolute Desert (2002)- a documentary with Michael Palin who follows a camel caravan of Wodaabe to Ingal in Niger for the annual Sahara Cure Salée festival, to an oasis at Tabelot, then across the Tenere Desert to the border of Algeria.

The 2010 ethnographic documentaryDance with the Wodaabesby Sandrine Loncke explores, from the point of view of its participants, the complex cultural significance of the spectacular but frequently misunderstood and sensationalized Wodaabe ritual celebrations known as "Geerewol".

The Niger-based bandEtran Finatawais composed of Wodaabe andTuaregmembers and creates their unique style of "Nomad Blues" by combining modern arrangements and electric guitars with more traditional instruments and polyphonic Wodaabe singing. In 2005 they recorded an album and toured Europe.

"Wodaabe Dancer" is the name of aninstrumentaltrack on guitaristJennifer Batten's 1997 album,Jennifer Batten's Tribal Rage: Momentum.

  • A group of traveling Wodaabe in Niger, 1997
    A group of traveling Wodaabe in Niger, 1997
  • Two Wodaabe men
    Two Wodaabe men
  • A young woman judging the beauty of men at a Gerewol
    A young woman judging the beauty of men at a Gerewol
  • Woman from Cameroon
    Woman from Cameroon

References

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  1. ^abBoesen, Elisabeth (2007). "Pastoral Nomadism and Urban Migration Mobility among the Fulbe Wodaabe of Central Niger".Cultures of migration: African perspectives.Lit Verlag.ISBN978-3-8258-0668-2.OCLC171564162.
  2. ^EA BRACKENBURY.NOTES ON THE "BORORO FULBE" OR NOMAD "CATTLE FULANI"African Affairs, vol. XXIII, number 208, 1924
  3. ^abatlasofhumanity.com."Niger, Wodaabe Tribe".Atlas Of Humanity.Retrieved16 September2022.
  4. ^Mace, Ruth; Pagel, Mark (December 1994). "The Comparative Method in Anthropology".Current Anthropology.35(5): 549–564.doi:10.1086/204317.S2CID146297584.
  5. ^Indigenous Mbororo woman to speak at Paris Agreement signing ceremony on 22 April.Sustainable Development Goals, United Nations. Retrieved on 15 June 2016.
  6. ^ab"Wodaabe People".University of Iowa.
  7. ^teamAG (23 August 2019)."The Wodaabe – Nomads of the North".Africa Geographic.Retrieved16 September2022.
  8. ^abcd"The male beauty contest judged by women".BBC News.20 January 2011.Retrieved16 September2022.
  9. ^abcCarol Beckwith,Niger's Wodaabe: "People of the Taboo"Archived4 March 2016 at theWayback Machine.National Geographic,1983, vol. 164, no4, pp. 483–509
  10. ^Loftsdóttir, Kristín. When nomads lose cattle: Wodaabe negotiations of ethnicity. African Sociological Review 2004, 8(2): 52–76
  11. ^"The Fulani/Fulbe People".www.metmuseum.org.October 2002.Retrieved21 March2023.
  12. ^Carol Beckwith.An Interview with Carol Beckwith.African Arts, Vol. 18, No. 4 (Aug. 1985), pp. 38–45
  13. ^Mette Bovin (2001), p.13
  14. ^Gabrielle Lyon,The WodaabeArchived15 March 2002 at theWayback Machine
  15. ^"In pictures: The men competing for love in the deserts of Chad".BBC News.27 February 2017.Retrieved21 September2022.
  16. ^Skutsch, Carl, ed. (2005).Encyclopedia of the World's Minorities.New York: Routledge. p. 229.ISBN1-57958-468-3.
  17. ^"Wodaabe religion".Africa.com.
  18. ^Beckwith, Carol, and Angela Fisher.African Ceremonies.New York: Harry N Abrams, 1999.
  19. ^Niger's dandy Gerewol festival,The Times,4 July 2004

Sources

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Wikimedia Commons has media related toWodaabe.

Photos and videos

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